The Federal Government has released a list of some Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) chieftains who allegedly looted the nation’s treasury, while the PDP responded by naming some All Progressives Congress (APC) looters promising to soon commence a serialisation of all the looters hiding in the APC and the government of President Muhammadu Buhari.
The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, released the list at a press conference in Lagos on Friday.
Mohammed said the individuals include officials in the past government.
The names in the list, revealed by the Federal Government, also include PDP chieftains who are currently being tried for corruption and financial crimes.
“The PDP has challenged us to name the looters under their watch. They said they did not loot the treasury. Well, I am sure they know that the treasury was looted dry under their watch. Yet they decided to grandstand. This shows the hollowness of their apology,” Mohammed said as he released the names.
Names in the list include:
PDP Chairman Uche Secondus
Allegation: On the 19th of Feb 2015, he took N200 million only from the office of the NSA.
Former PDP Financial Secretary
Allegation: On the 24th of Oct 2014, he took N600 million only from the office of former NSA.
Former National Publicity Secretary Olisah Metuh
On trial for allegedly collecting N1.4bn from the office of former NSA.
Dr Raymond Dokpesi, Chairman of DAAR Communications
On trial for allegedly taking N2.1 billion from the office of the former NSA.
Former SSA to President Goodluck Jonathan, Dudafa Waripamo-Owei
On trial, over N830 million allegedly kept in accounts of four different companies.
Former President Goodluck Jonathan’s Cousin Robert Azibaola
On Thursday, a Federal High Court ruled that he has a case to answer for allegedly collecting $40 million from the office of former NSA.
The decision by the APC-led government to reveal the names of the alleged looters and the funds allegedly stolen is in response to the opposition party, PDP’s, challenge to the government to name those alleged to have looted the country and destroyed the economy.
Mohammed said this list is just a tip of the iceberg, and the APC did not make these cases up as some of them currently have cases in court.
“They are in court and the records are available. Some of the people on this list are seeking to plea bargain, and that is a fact.
“We insist that Nigeria was looted blind under the watch of the PDP and that the starting point in tendering an apology is for them to return the loot,” he said.
Mohammed said further that the APC will not stop talking about the alleged looting by the PDP.
“We will not stop talking about the massive looting by the PDP. They brought Nigeria to this sorry pass. We are now looking around for loans to build infrastructure, and they ask us not to talk about it. We will talk about it,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) says it will soon commence a serialisation of all the looters hiding in the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the government of President Muhammadu Buhari.
Describing the list of alleged looters published by the federal government as “hollow and laughable”, the opposition party said the Buhari administration had drawn a line of attack.
Lai Mohammed, minister of information, had released a list of “looters” at a press conference in Lagos on Friday.
But in his response, Kola Ologbondiyan, spokesman of the PDP, tackled the government for omitting the names of APC members standing trial for corruption.
Ologbondiyan said none of those mentioned has been convicted for corruption.
“The list put forward by the federal government as purported looters amounts to a cheap blackmail as none of those listed has been indicted or convicted by any court of competent jurisdiction or any panel of enquiry in our country,” he said in a statement.
“The federal government even included names of individuals who are not standing trial or under investigation for any act of corruption, as well as those who are not even PDP members. The Buhari-led federal government has manifested its frenzy by going after matters that are in court and in which none of the persons has been convicted, thus betraying their wickedness and desperation to mislead the public, the court and divert attention from the heavy looting involving their members.
“We are not in doubt that the individuals he has mentioned will take their legitimate stride and pursue appropriate action in the court. This is a government that is yet to account for $26 billion (N9 trillion) stolen through corrupt oil contracts in the NNPC, N1.1 trillion worth of crude diverted to service APC interests, N18 billion internally displaced sersons (IDPs) intervention fund stolen by APC officials, including their former secretary to the government of the federation (SGF), Babachir Lawal, the N10 billion National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) for which members of the Buhari cabal were indicted as well as the Mainagate, where the APC government recalled and reinstated an individual indicted for scam running into billions of naira.
“Since the APC has decided to draw this attack, we will no longer hold back but appropriately commence a serialisation of all looters hiding in APC and the presidency.”
The spokesman said the “flimsy allegations” by the APC would not stop the PDP from challenging the government to fulfil its campaign promises.
